Care homes allow residents to go out after Saturday

The elderly and disabled living in care homes will be allowed to go outside the centres for walks or spend the night during visits to the family home from this Saturday onwards. Thus, thee Department of Health lifts the restrictions it imposed a month ago, which were harshly criticised by relatives, who have insisted on asking for the measures to be relaxed, especially once most residents have already received the second dose of the vaccine against covid.

This change will only affect homes classed as green (no coronavirus cases) and orange (with cases but outbreak under control). Catalan Health Minister Alba Vergés says this flexibilisation comes as a result of the improvement of epidemiological indicators in recent weeks and especially within the residences, where 75% of users and 60% of staff are already immunised with the second dose of the vaccine.

From now on, the visits received by residents will not have to undergo any rapid screening test and, still only in green and orange centres, users may continue to receive visits of a friend or relative once a week. As for going outside, residents are allowed to take a walk for a few hours but also to sleep in the family home, and when they return to the residence they will no longer have to be tested for antigens, unless they have any symptoms compatible with covid. However, they will not be able to go back to their bubble until they have disinfected their shoes or wheelchair, washed their hands and changed their clothes.

The Health Department also recommends that care home workers are tested fortnightly if effective potential growth (EPG) is above 300 or monthly if EPG is below 300. This would apply to all towns with over 30,000 inhabitants.

Families consider the protocol a "breakthrough" but the relaxation falls short of their expectations, says María José Carcelén, the Coordinator 5 + 1, which is committed to allow visitors to have physical contact with residents with full protection - gloves, mask and gown - especially with those who suffer from dementia or cognitive impairment. In addition, the association demands "a rapid response channel" so that families can report care homes that do not follow the rules and do not allow visitors.

Employer association ACRA describes the relaxation of measures as an important step that brings some "hope" but, its president, Cinta Pascual, warns that rapid antigen testing provided "tranquility" to managements. However, she is confident that the high coverage of the vaccine in care homes is sufficient to keep coronavirus out.